Fred in Love

In the early 1970s, when he was still an aspiring, unpublished writer, Felice Picano began a remarkable relationship with an extraordinary animal: a days-old kitten slated for euthanasia who refused to perish. Rescued, named, and trained, Fred became an extraordinarily intelligent companion, ally, teacher, and constant wonder to the

Overview

In the early 1970s, when he was still an aspiring, unpublished writer, Felice Picano began a remarkable relationship with an extraordinary animal: a days-old kitten slated for euthanasia who refused to perish. Rescued, named, and trained, Fred became an extraordinarily intelligent companion, ally, teacher, and constant wonder to the author as he began his ascent through the Bohemian circles of Greenwich Village, among musicians, actors, curious characters, and even the famous British actress in hiding right next door. But when an acquaintance brought his female cat to be serviced by Fred, an entire new set of experiences opened up for the cat-and for Picano, who'd never had the nerve to befriend her owner, his ideal man. The course of love seldom runs straight for cats or for men, and this time would prove (hilariously) no different. This is another of Picano's distinguished portraits of a vanished era, when a new gay domain was solidifying only a few years after the Stonewall Riots, and the still nascent gay literary world that Picano would help invent was just a conception. Fred in Love is a charming, nostalgic, funny, gossipy, involving, and ultimately enlightening story about how we learn and grow, and how we love-whether the object of our affection is a cat or another human being. It's sure to take its place next to Picano's now classic literary memoirs Ambidextrous, Men Who Loved Me, and A House on the Ocean, a House on the Bay.

Editorial Reviews

From the Publisher

"A lovely, not too nostalgic portrait of what is now a vanished bohemia."—Jim Marks, Executive Editor, Lambda Literary Foundation

"Picano, a popular writer of gay fiction—author of, most recently, the novel Onyx (2001)—this time around submits a beautifully tender but not maudlin essay about his cat, Fred. Picano was living in New York City when he first encountered Fred, who was only a couple of weeks old. Fred's "education" is chronicled here in selective but fond and telling detail—if a cat can indeed be educated, of course. Fred and the author built a tremendously affectionate relationship based on Picano's eventual realization that, after he and Fred went through a bad spell over Fred's confusion and desire and pining for his one great lady-cat, "All I can do is love him." Lots of people have a cat story, but this one excels in seeing the whole adventure with both irony and amusement."—Brad Hooper, Booklist

"Having always been allergic to cats, reading Felice Picano's new book about his beloved cat Fred was so vivid that it caused sneezing and made my eyes water."—Bob Smith, author of Openly Bob

"A beautifully written roman à clef centered on the felicitous and mysterious connection between Man and Cat."—Tony Mendoza, author of Ernie: A Photographer’s Memoir

Related Subjects

Meet the Author

Felice Picano is the award-winning author of many books, including the best-selling novels Like People in History, Looking Glass Lives, The Lure, and Eyes. He is also the author with Dr. Charles Silverstein of The New Joy of Gay Sex. A native of New York, Felice Picano now lives in Los Angeles.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

Fred in Love by Felice Picano
This is a wonderful novella, narrated from the first person point of view in which we discover the author's proclivity towards the feline population.
Starting with Chloe, the first cat Felice was ever introduced as a child while living at home, then Puppy, a cat that thought it was a dog, then Gustave, Felice's first solo cat.
Not only does Felice tells us about the cats, but he associates them to the events occurring in his life. Therefore, his boyfriend, Walter introduces Felice to the infamous Frescobaldi, later named Fred. And it is through Zeb Freedman - another friend - that Fred will fall in love as Zeb brings his female cat, Jennie, who's in heat so that Fred will service her.
After that there are only two more cats: Tally, later named Miss Cat, and Max - but none as special as Fred.
A wonderful easy read for anyone who loves cats...